Supporters of the Al Nusrah Front, al Qaeda's official branch in Syria, think that the hand of Allah can be seen in footage of a recent suicide bombing. Jihadists have marketed supposedly divine miracles for decades. Abdullah Azzam, Osama bin Laden's mentor, was an early innovator in this genre of propaganda. Read more →

The Islamic State has released a new video showing the execution of 25 Syrian soldiers in the ancient city of Palmyra. The executioners appear to be teenagers, or even younger. Days earlier, the jihadist group released images of statues from the city being destroyed. Read more →

Ansar al Din, an al Qaeda-linked group that is part of the Ansar al Sharia coalition, has posted images from the early fighting in the new offensive against Bashar al Assad's forces in Aleppo. Read more →

The Islamic State again shows the use of the US anti-tank missile system, after previously doing so near Palmyra and Damascus. Other jihadist groups, including al Qaeda, have also publicized the use of TOWs in the past. Read more →

In the video, Hezbollah Brigades, which is a US-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, is seen operating an array of US military hardware, including M113 armored personnel carriers, HUMVEEs, and artillery. Read more →

During yesterday's meeting in Tehran between Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al Abadi and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, the former introduced the latter to Abu Mahdi al Muhandis, the operations chief for the Iranian-backed Popular Mobilization Committee and a US-listed Specially Designated Global Terrorist. Read more →

Leading Iraqi political and religious leaders such as Prime Minister Haidar al Abadi and Grand Ayatollah Sistani have been reduced to cozying up to what John Allen, the US Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition To Counter ISIL, or the Islamic State, described as the “extremist elements” of the Popular Mobilization Committee. Read more →

The jihadist group, which has published pictures of BGM-71 anti-tank missiles before, again shows the usage of these weapons at Palmyra. Many of these systems have been employed by jihadist groups or have been used to assist jihadist groups. Read more →

Simply because Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani and his representatives are endorsing the Popular Mobilization Committee or Iranian-supported militias such as the Iman Ali Brigade doesn't make them any less radical. Read more →

The poorly timed DoD report was issued the same day that the Islamic State took control of the government center, and two days before all of Ramadi, including the Anbar Operations Command and the large military base there, were overrun. Read more →

The statement also confirms that he and his group, the Al Mulathameen Brigade, are still loyal to Zawahiri and al Qaeda. The Long War Journal cannot independently verify the statement's authenticity. Read more →

The jihadist group shows more fighting that has taken place at the facility. It is unclear when some of the footage was recorded, as some scenes have been previously featured in photo reports. While the Iraqi Security Forces have claimed to have regained control of the refinery after a recent Islamic State offensive, attacks are still occurring at the complex. Read more →

Two children fire a howitzer towards Iraqi Security Force positions in the Baiji oil refinery. Prior to this video, the Islamic State has shown kids conducting and assisting in executions. They are part of the "Cubs of the Caliphate," which is what the jihadist group calls those children it trains in various training camps in Iraq and Syria. Read more →

In a new video from Baiji, the Islamic State highlighted the use of a drone to gather intelligence for its "operations control room" directing the fighting at the oil refinery complex. The jihadist group has showcased the use of drones before, most notably at the Brigade 93 base in Raqqah last summer. Read more →

The photo report details the fighting at Sheikh al Hilal near the city of Al Salamiyah in Hama province. The Islamic State was able to seize a nearby town, as well as release a video showing the execution of several regime soldiers. In the south, the jihadist group was able to enter the Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp but is now fighting for control against Jaish al Islam and a group loyal to Hamas. Read more →

Several Iranian-backed Shiite militia groups continue to operate in Tikrit, despite claims by US government officials that most of these militias had left the battle. The US continues to launch airstrikes to support Iraqi forces and these militias, many leaders of which are responsible for killing US and Coalition servicemen during the Iraq War. Read more →

The two suicide bombers, one Kuwaiti and one Saudi, were deployed in conjunction with a larger assault on the regime-held Idlib city. Several rebel groups, including the Al Nusrah Front, Jund al Aqsa, Ahrar al Sham and others have joined forces in a coalition called Jaish al Fateh. Read more →

Four of the crew are reported to have been captured with a fifth being executed on the spot. The fate of the sixth crew member remains unknown. No official statement has come from the Al Nusrah Front but the chopper went down in a Nusrah stronghold of Idlib province. Read more →

Several Shiite militias, which are supported by the Iranian Qods Force, and the Iraqi Security Forces have taken over several surrounding towns of Tikrit. These militias have published several photos and videos from these towns in recent days. Read more →

The rocket barrage has not yet been claimed, but al Qaeda-affiliated groups have launched similar attacks on the UN in the past. This comes one day after a terrorist attack, perpetrated by group loyal to al Qaeda, occurred in Mali's capital. Read more →

Several photos have been released by the semi-official Iranian news agency Fars showing Qassem Soleimani on the battlefield near Tikrit. Other photos circulating on social media show the leader of the Qods Force with various Shiite militias taking part in the current offensive in central Iraq. Read more →